This invention generally relates to an improved bearing assemblies for use and connection with conveyor rollers and more particularly to a selectively removable bearing assembly which provides for a radius of curvature at each end of the tubular cylindrical body of the conveyor roller.
Typically, prior art forms of tubular conveyor rollers involve the insertion of the bearing assembly at each end of the tubular roller body and thereafter swagging or otherwise deforming the tubular body to mechanically interconnect the bearings to said body. This technique deforms the ends of the tubular rollers thereby causing a loss of concentricity.
Additionally, it is important to provide a radius of curvature at the ends of each of the tubular rollers so as to avoid any damage to the articles being transmitted on the conveyor. For example, if a corrugated carton is placed on a conveyor having conveyor rollers without such radius of curvature then the rollers could damage the carton while in transit on the conveyor, or when being placed on or removed from the conveyor.
Further, the prior art forms of conveyor rollers are expensive to manufacture and such examples of typical prior art forms of conveyor rollers are as follows:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. Nos.: ______________________________________ 3,301,612 3,753,603 3,897,988 4,315,566 ______________________________________
My previous patent, namely, U.S. Pat. No. 4,339,159 directed to a "Conveyor Roller Bearings" and patented on July 13, 1982, has successfully addressed certain of the above noted problems. The present invention provides additional advances over prior art forms of conveyor rollers and conveyor roller bearings.